Welcome to
The Studio blog.
Welcome! I’m so glad you’re here.
You have found the very first post on the blog here at Clara T. Studio. My name is Clara, and I offer web design, development, and SEO. I live in Ithaca, in the beautiful Finger Lakes area of NY. I LOVE living here in this place that has a deep appreciation for local craft and natural beauty. I moved here just a few years ago from the SF Bay Area, and though my business is new, I am not a new designer. I have been working as a web and graphic designer for over 20 years. I have worked with small business and large corporations and am very excited to be working for myself now.
My business is built on a simple, straightforward idea: Your website should feel like an extension of you and your business. It should be beautiful, functional, and profitable.
The Connection Between Clay and Code
I live in the beautiful, vibrant community of Ithaca, New York, a place where the Finger Lakes meet a deep appreciation for local craft and natural beauty. When I'm not working with clients, you can often find me the pottery studio, hands covered in clay, working on a new piece.
There is a profound connection between the slow, intentional process of throwing a pot and the work I do in web design. In pottery, you cannot rush the process. You center the clay, apply steady pressure, and respect the material. If you skip a step, the piece will collapse.
The same is true for a website. Intentionality is the foundation of quality. I love working with people who appreciate beautiful, quality things, because they understand that . Whether it's a hand-stitched leather good, a unique piece of jewelry, or a multi-page website, the care and thought put into the structure are what make it truly beautiful and functional.
For this post, I want to set the tone for what this blog will be about. It won’t just be about font choices and color palettes (though we’ll certainly cover those!). It will be about the strategy that turns a beautiful website into a profitable one.
So here we go.
The Critical Difference Between a Beautiful Website and a Profitable Website.
If you are an artist, or a maker, you already excel at the “beautiful” part. Your work is stunning. But the gap between a stunning portfolio and a successful e-commerce platform is often wider than you think.
A beautiful website is an asset. A profitable website is a tool.
A beautiful website showcases your work.
A profitable website guides your customer, builds trust, and actively asks for the sale.
The Studio blog is here to help you bridge that gap between beautiful and profitable. We will explore how to apply the same level of care and intentionality you use in your craft to the structure and strategy of your online presence. We’ll talk about how to write product descriptions that sell, how to build trust with clear policies, and how to use your website to connect with your ideal customers.
I am particularly excited to work with my local Ithaca and Fingler Lakes area artists and makers. I understand the local market and the unique challenges of selling high-quality, handmade goods in a community that values authenticity. But regardless of where you are, if you are a solopreneur, a creative, or a small business owner who believes in quality and intentionality, this space is for you.
Thank you for being here. I look forward to sharing this journey with you and helping you build the beautiful, functional, and profitable online presence your incredible work deserves.
